In the overtime-packed Bulls-Celtics series, Boston point guard Rajon Rondo smashed Chicago center Brad Miller across the face. A dazed Miller missed two free throws that could have tied the game.

The following day league officials said it wasn't a flagrant foul because "at some point" Rondo showed intent to go for the ball. Fans and the media went crazy, essentially saying: "What game were they watching?"

Then, at an NBA Competition Committee meeting in late May, Joel Litvin, president of NBA Basketball Operations said 15 committee members said it was a flagrant foul, 14 said it wasn't.

"A room full of Basketball experts couldn't even decide," Litvin said. "It's just a hard call to make. It's not because there's ambiguity. Unlike leaving the bench or throwing a punch, some calls aren't black and white. There's judgment involved."

Woody Mayfield, who lives in Norman, was an NBA referee for 10 years after calling Division I games in the Big Eight, Southeasteern Conference, Southwestern Conference and Missouri Valley.

"They get 99 percent of the calls right," Mayfield said. "In every game there probably are two or three plays that are controversial whether it's a buzzer-beater, a 25-point blowout, the NBA Finals or a nothing game like the Clippers-Sacramento.

"Whistle reaction time and knowledge is almost a science. They see play after play. Fans don't want to hear it, but these are the best referees in the world. Nobody can touch them."

Try telling that to a Lakers fan the day after Denver's Dahntay Jones tripped Kobe Bryant and no flagrant foul was called.

Or try using "the best refs in the world" logic when replays show a referee clearly blew a call or Dwight Howard is slapped with a technical for taunting when he was merely celebrating.

Flagrant fouls have become the hot-button issue. What's complicated matters is league officials sometimes overrule the on-the-court call the following day.

Commissioner David Stern said 92 percent of flagrant fouls are called correctly. But with possible suspensions involved he said slow-motion replay and eight camera angles can correct calls.

"We review those and then you get comments like, 'It's all very nebulous or ambiguous,'" Stern said. "I'd like to invite everyone to referee training camp next season and tell me. I always hear it's a judgment issue. Yes (it is)."

Mayfield said Bill Clinton once told him that NBA officials, not the U.S. President, have the most difficult job. Referees don't impact national security or the economy but their job is difficult, more difficult than ever. Athletes are bigger, stronger, quicker.

"You have to understand how fast they're making those calls," Mayfield said. "Referees are taught to anticipate the play, not the call. They're taught whistle reaction, suck on the whistle, then see the play before you blow the whistle. A late whistle 99 percent of the time gets the call right."

Funny how no one debated how the referees affected Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

"Someone wrote an article in USA Today before the playoffs started that said: 'It's that time of year. Time to blame the referees for everything,' " said Ron Johnson, senior vice president of referee operations. "It's so true. Every fan has instant replay in their family room.

"What fans sometimes don't understand is the same way players put themselves in position to make a great play, referees put themselves in position to make the correct call. Sometimes they miss just like a player misses a free throw."

The NBA Referees Association declined comment, but Johnson said the league constantly explores ways to improve officiating. Bernie Fryer, the league's director of officials, monitors every referee's track record.

"We're going to keep doing what we've always done," Johnson said. "After every game, every crew has a post-game meeting. They actually start at halftime. I have management look at every call.

"For every call a referee has gotten wrong, if there is a trend we have dialogue both electronically and have Bernie Fryer talk to them. That goes on day after day. During summer camps we prioritize where we may have weaknesses. Our goal is to get every call right."

After the Tim Donaghy scandal, Stern promised more transparency concerning officiating.

"Did he make it to the spot ahead of the offensive player? Is it a block? Is it a charge?" Stern said. "It's a judgment based on as many years and as much development as we can get.

"But as we open it up the downside is it engenders more debate. But we've steeled ourselves for that and are we're moving forward."